Whitley T4236 near Dishforth airfield.
During the evening of 10th March 1941 the crew of this 78 Squadron aircraft had undertaken an operational flight to bomb Boulogne, At 23.40hrs as the aircraft was coming in to land it overshot the flarepath at Dishforth and crashed just off the airfield. The incident is listed in a basic police record I have come across with the location given as being on the Boroughbridge side of Dishforth airfield and some 600 yards from Dishforth village, the police record also recorded that two of the crew were slightly injured. The aircraft was slightly damaged.
Pilot - Sgt Ronald John Fraas RAFVR (748161).
Second Pilot - P/O Christopher Chevalier Cheshire RAF (87635).
Observer - Sgt Frank Harry William Unwin RAFVR (580475).
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - Sgt T Brown.
Wireless Operator / Air Gunner - Sgt Francis Alan Barton RAF (551110).
Whitley T4236 was built to contract 38599/39 by Armstrong Whitworth Ltd. at Baginton and was awaiting collection on 30th September 1940. It was taken on charge by 78 Squadron at Dishforth on an unknown date possibly after a brief spell in RAF MU. It was being used operationally by 78 Squadron in November 1940. There is no record of this incident on 10th March 1941 in the published history of the aircraft but it sounds like a minor Cat.A/FB incident. It must have been repaired on site at Dishforth and continued to be used by 78 Squadron until transfer to 10 OTU at Abingdon on an unknown date. It then passed to 24 OTU at Honeybourne by May 1944 as it was this unit when put into MU store and then struck off charge on 17th May 1944.
F/O Ronald Fraas was later posted to 405 Squadron. In the early hours of 7th July 1941 he was returning from an operational flight in Wellington W5490 when the aircraft crashed on the edge of Pocklington airfield. All of the crew were seriously injured or killed. He died of his injuries the following day, he was twenty six years old and is buried in Hitchin Cemetery, Hertfordshire. He received his commission to the rank of P/O on probation on 1st May 1941, he was probably in the rank of Acting F/O when he died.
Christopher Cheshire was the brother of Leonard Cheshire VC. He was made PoW on 12th August 1941 flying 76 Squadron Halifax L9530 which was shot down by flak. His life is well documented on the internet.
Frederick Unwin received a commission in 1942 and was later awarded the DFC for service with 103 Squadron, Gazetted on 14th September 1943.
Francis Barton received the DFM for service with 78 Squadron, Gazetted on 9th May 1941. He was later Mentioned in Despatches on 24th September 1941.